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That means Microsoft has a better product, that doesn't mean it's a monopoly.
by partiallypro 7y ago
That means Microsoft has a better product, that doesn't mean it's a monopoly.
- paxys 7y agoThose two aren't mutually exclusive
- partiallypro 7y agoYou're correct, but in this case it's clear Microsoft doesn't have a monopoly on spreadsheets. They just make the best software. They aren't bashing vendors over the head with Excel, etc. IMO the case for Apple or Microsoft being monopolistic is pretty weak compared to Google, Facebook and perhaps Amazon. Apple has a problem because it's such a walled garden. Microsoft generally doesn't have any of the problems the FAANG (sans Netflix) companies have. This, currently on the front page...sure doesn't sound like Excel is a monopoly https://foundationinc.co/lab/the-saas-opportunity-of-unbundling-excel/ https://foundationinc.co/lab/the-saas-opportunity-of-unbundl...
- the_watcher 7y agoWhat's the difference between this and Google's "monopoly" on search, which is again based on a superior product (You could argue the same about Facebook, but at least in the search case, there's no network effects tying people to using Google).
- myoon 7y agoThis isn't comprehensive, but no one has really talked about Excel being unfairly leveraged to prevent the entry of competitors, gain an unfair advantage in unrelated markets, or exploit its consumers. Now Google may not have done any of the above with search, but it's likely possible to argue that they have unfairly promoted their own products over others, or "unfairly" chose to not list certain websites.
- bduerst 7y agoGoogle doesn't have a monopoly on search - the supply for search engines has many equally accessible competitors supplying the market. FB has a monopolistic-power in the network effects like you said, but even then entrants like Snapchat show that the network effects can be gained for new competitors.
- partiallypro 7y agoBecause Google removes consumer choice and forces vendors to play ball with its search platform on Android devices. Microsoft does not make you use Excel on Windows, iOS or Android. Google can cripple your entire company or industry by cutting APIs. You can't do that in Windows, even if Microsoft bans you from volume licensing, you can still install Windows on virtually any machine.
- caspper69 7y agoThose two are not mutually exclusive.
- Havoc 7y agoBetter product for sure. But that doesn't mean it's not a monopoly. >That means Microsoft has a better product, that doesn't mean it's a monopoly. Actually that's the text book definition of monopoly. Monopolies are thus characterized by * a lack of economic competition to produce the good or service - nobody else is making commercial spreadsheet tools * a lack of viable substitute goods - all the other stuff (google sheets, openoffice) isn't workable in practice * high monopoly price well above the seller's marginal cost - a MS office download costs MS near nothing...selling price is still sky-high. There are crazy network effects at play which create near insurmountable barriers to entry. Another sure sign of a monopoly vulnerable to monopoly pricing/profits.
- partiallypro 7y agoI've taken plenty of business law classes, and I've never heard such a thing in terms of what defines a monopoly. Your 1st point is debunked by your second point. Your 2nd point of "isn't workable in practice" is just bunk. For your third point, GSuite costs more per seat than O365 in some cases...so I don't even know what you're talking about.
- bduerst 7y agoSpreadsheets are becoming old tech as big data picks up, which is why you're seeing a split in the substitute products. For smaller datasets, there's online solutions like Google Sheets and Airtable. For larger datasets, there's thousands of different databases that work better than Excel. Either way, consumers have options.
- dageshi 7y agoThat's what I always thought, but apparently it does now.